Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Who the $#*!x?!@ are they kidding?

Everyone is all excited the president admitted we have secret prisons. Now that this administration and its apologists are busy fessing up to stuff they used to deny, claiming credit for stuff they didn't do, laying blame where it doesn't belong and asking us to blindly trust them to get things right while they keep doing exactly what they used to say they weren't doing... all I want to know is: Who do they think they are kidding?

Here's my problem...actually two problems...actually three problems...well more than three, but for now I will only focus on two.....

First off ...just to get this out of the way.... let's look at the "We haven't been attacked in five years" line that is the foundational justification for this.

The WTC was first attacked in 1993. The guys that were responsible were caught and brought to justice. They ain't running around doing crazy shit or inciting crazy muthafuckas to do crazy shit. They are in jail. Done. Case closed. What happened? Nothing. That's right. For the remainder of the Clinton administration they were not able to attack us on US soil. That's a pretty good run. How did the Clinton administration accomplish this feat?

Did they deploy a massive army? No.Did they invade anybody? Nope.Did they blow a hole in the budget? Nah.Did they scrap the constitution? No way.Did terrorist attacks dramatically increase? Uh Uh.Did they alienate our allies? No.Did they convince congress to provide the executive with extraordinary powers? Absolutely not.Maybe it was luck? Doubtful.

Whatever it was they were doing .... it worked for eight years.

The Corrupt Bastards Club takes over and what happens? Less than a year into their first term, we get attacked! But somehow they are protecting us better than the guys who kept us from being attacked for eight long years? That just doesn't add up. Maybe I am just a poor publick skool produck but where I come from an eight beats a five every time.

When you consider the facts it is clear the previous administration did a better job of protecting us than the current one at a fraction of the cost.

For some reason that simple fact eludes the talking heads on TV. I won't even bother with the attacks overseas... this administration's own data shows the attacks have grown dramatically since we invaded Iraq. So much for "cakewalks", "last throes", and "birth pangs of a new Middle East."

So let's go to problem two. The lack of historical perspective. Sure, we can forget who was running the show when things went bad. We can forget the guy who told us "We know where they[WMD] are," didn't. Now we are supposed to forget this administration repeatedly denied the existence or illegality of the very prisons the President of the United States has just admitted we have. I'm not going to dance through the historical record, you don't need me to help you search Google using the keywords Rice denied secret prisons united states. To quote Rummy..."Goodness Gracious!" Do these people still believe they create their own reality? Golly Gee Whiz! They remind me of the guy who gets caught lying who then says, "Ok. Ok. This time I'll tell you the truth." Oh yeah, that engenders confidence.

Oh, and another thing..... While everyone is focusing on the latest head fake, here's a tidbit that seems to keep falling out of frame: According to Bloomberg News

President George W. Bush's proposal for trying suspected terrorists captured overseas would allow the use of evidence obtained by coercion and let judges bar defendants from hearings where classified evidence is discussed.

I'm not even going to comment on that nonsense except to say that when I started writing this I was going to make some snarky references to how Orwellian this administration's doublethink has become. Between you and me, I think they are way past Orwell... they are positively Kafkaesque.-----------

About Me

Myth:
A traditional story accepted as history;
serves to explain the worldview of a people.

Myths are as old as humanity.
Some are insightful.
Some are entertaining.
Some are downright dangerous.

Rulers have relied on the power of myths to lead and mislead people since time immemorial.
I call it "Mything the Point" when people use misleading myths to manipulate public opinion.

Misleading myths can be hazardous to the health of a society. If we let them go unchallenged, they will run riot and eventually choke us in our sleep. That is why we need to weed them out on a routine basis.

This blog is dedicated to examining some of the weeds growing in the marketplace of information. I hope this will help all of us do a better job of tending our gardens.